MediaShift Innovation Spotlight
For several months I covered innovative techno-journalism projects for the PBS MediaShift blog. The series was called Innovation Spotlight.
The MediaShift Innovation Spotlight will look in-depth at one great mash-up, database, mapping project or multimedia story that combines technology and journalism in useful ways. These projects can be at major newspaper or broadcast sites, or independent news sites or blogs. Web journalist extraordinaire Megan Taylor will be your guide to these regular bi-weekly spotlights.
PBS MediaShift Spotlight series
I talked to the creator of Neighborhood Watch, Matt Waite, about how the project was conceived and built, and what the response has been like. Although we had some technical difficulties on Skype, I was able to get some audio and also did a screencast for the site.
Big Pictures Help Tell Big Stories
My second article for MediaShift’s Innovation Spotlight series is about Alan Taylor’s The Big Picture blog at Boston.com: Big Pictures Help Tell Big Stories at Boston.com.
MediaShift Innovation Spotlight
I need Spotlight projects! So far, I’ve covered Neighborhood Watch, The Big Picture and California Schools Guide. If you are working on, have just finished, or know of a recent project that is an innovative blend of journalism and technology, please let me know.
Innovative Coverage of the Inauguration
Changing it up at Innovation Spotlight for the inauguration: Innovation in Inauguration Coverage. I started collecting projects the week before the inauguration, and ended up with over 100 links (which I will share via Delicious when I get the chance).
Spotlight Extended, Call for Projects
I spent a week or so collecting, sorting, e-mailing, and calling. I’ve spent the past 2 weeks doing interviews. And I ended up with 4 or 5 projects I wanted to write about.
MediaShift Innovation Spotlight: BronxRhymes Tracks History of Hip-Hop
I found a really great project produced by two individuals who did not set out to create journalism, but have done so nevertheless: BronxRhymes Uses Locality, Maps to Track History of Hip-Hop.
MediaShift Innovation Spotlight: Map-Timeline Framework
Another mini-Spotlight this week, featuring the Washington Post’s TimeSpace framework for media browsing. Check out Washington Post’s ‘Web Ninjas’ Build Map-Timeline Combo for how they did it and screenshots of the development.
MediaShift Innovation Spotlight: Represent
Check out Represent Helps New Yorkers Track Their Politicos to learn about how Andrei Scheinkman and Derek Willis did it.
MediaShift Innovation Spotlight: ChangeTracker, plus hiatus
This week I wrote my last Spotlight article for a while. Hopefully I’ll get to start them up again sometime down the road, but for now, sayonara. My last Spotlight is ProPublica’s ChangeTracker, created by new intern Brian Boyer.